Middlesbrough line up shock swoop Aston Villa starlet Jack Grealish as replacement for want-away Leicester target Gaston Ramirez
Boro boss Aitor Karanka is fuming with the winger as he tries to force through a Foxes move
JACK GREALISH is a surprise transfer target for Middlesbrough as they prepare to offload want-away winger Gaston Ramirez.
Boro boss Aitor Karanka has ripped into Ramirez over his demand to quit the Riverside for a move to Premier League champions Leicester and he looks to be already planning his replacement.
And he has already lined-up PSG flop Jese to come in as part-replacement and now the reformed Aston Villa bad boy is on his radar.
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reports there is a healthy line of communication between Boro and Steve Bruce’s side after a handful of smooth transactions in the last could of windows.
Villa have sold Boro Adama Traore, Brad Guzan and Rudy Gestede in the last two windows with Albert Adomah going the other way. There is also ongoing dialogue as Bruce tries to land Boro outcast Jordan Rhodes.
Grealish has started 16 Championship matches so far this season but he has been subbed off in eight of those proving he is still a work-in-progress.
The tricky winger has scored three Villa goals this season and curtailed the party lifestyle that threatened his early career, after a number of high-profile and low-forehead moments.
All eyes have been on the slick-haired 21-year-old since he burst onto the scene with a marauding 2015 FA Cup semi-final display against Liverpool.
And under Bruce he could be correctly nurtured with the right balance of freedom on the pitch and guidance off it from the experienced boss.